So I took my derailleurs off for cleaning...

and I put them back on just like I thought they were but I am noticing the front derailleur rubs the chain on the small ring. The height should be fine because I can still see the rings left over from when I took it off. I also noticed that without the chain on it the rear derailleur guide pulley touches the largest ring on the crankset when its in that gear. I think this might be because there is no chain on and the derailleur isn't pulled away from the cogs. I am not sure where to go to from here, all of the tensioning screws are untouched, they should be fine because they are in the same position I bought it in. Any recommendations on what to do?

Without the chain on the rear derailleur will be extended all the way back. Chain would have to be on the bike in order to pull the cage away from the cassette.

The front rubbing issue could only be 2 things. 1. the alignment is not perfect. 2. the front derailleur was adjusted so much using the barrel adjuster on the shifter that it actually pulled the cage away from the chain. Put the chain on the bike, and with no cable attached, adjust the LOW limiter screw until the rubbing stops. Then attach the cable(with some tension), and adjust the barrel adjuster in small increments until the bike shifts smoothly.

I also noticed that without the chain on it the rear derailleur guide pulley touches the largest ring on the crankset when its in that gear.

Really short chainstays? Just kidding- I'm assuming you mean it's touching the rear cassette, and I wouldn't worry about what the derailleur is doing without the chain on. The front derailleur problem probably has to do with the angle it's mounted at, it should be parallel with the chainrings. Or you could have too much tension on the cable.

So I realigned my front derailleur and it seems ok now. My problem now is that the back derailleur doesn't transition from the chain to the guide pulley. When I turn the pedals it seems to skip on and off a bit and this causes the tension arm to constantly be bumping up and down.

The chain is rubbing on the outside of the derailleur, not the inside. Should I sill use those steps?

Yes. It is still adjusted with the low limit screw. with no cable tension, the front derailleur should be adjusted with the low limit screw so that the chain doesn't rub in the largest and smallest cassette cog. Sometimes you just can't hit all 10 cogs (on a 10 speed setup) without some mild rub in the highest or lowest rear gear. If this is the case, you want to make sure it doesn't rub in the largest rear cog while on the small front chain ring. You really shouldn't be in the small front and small back for any reason so a little rub in this combo is not a problem. The opposite is true for the big front chain ring. Use the high limit screw to adjust the derailleur for the big ring so the derailleur won't overshift. Does this by pulling the derailleur out with your hand while adjusting the high limit screw.
After this is done, adjust the cable tension until it shifts smooth.

So I realigned my front derailleur and it seems ok now. My problem now is that the back derailleur doesn't transition from the chain to the guide pulley. When I turn the pedals it seems to skip on and off a bit and this causes the tension arm to constantly be bumping up and down.

This is probably a cable tension issue. You might be skipping between gears. If it acts like it is trying to shift that is your problem. Play with the cable tension until it shifts up and down smoothly. do 1/4 turn at a time.

This is probably a cable tension issue. You might be skipping between gears. If it acts like it is trying to shift that is your problem. Play with the cable tension until it shifts up and down smoothly. do 1/4 turn at a time.

I'll give it a try, even when the chain isn't moving though I can kinda tell the pulley isn't lined up exactly with the smallest ring. Thanks for your help so far.

I'll give it a try, even when the chain isn't moving though I can kinda tell the pulley isn't lined up exactly with the smallest ring. Thanks for your help so far.

If this is the case, you need to loosen the cable tension or adjust the low limit. Loosen the cable set screw make sure the derailleur is lined up with the smallest rear cog. If not, adjust the low limit screw until it lines up. After this, pull the cable snug (not too tight) and lock the pinch bolt. Then adjust the cable tension with the adjustment knob until it shifts smoothly.

If this is the case, you need to loosen the cable tension or adjust the low limit. Loosen the cable set screw make sure the derailleur is lined up with the smallest rear cog. If not, adjust the low limit screw until it lines up. After this, pull the cable snug (not too tight) and lock the pinch bolt. Then adjust the cable tension with the adjustment knob until it shifts smoothly.

Yea after further messing around I think your initial suggestion was correct, I changed the gears around a bit and it seems like the pulley was in line just fine, but when the derailleur jumps I can see it catch onto the next biggest ring and then come back down causing the arm to move around. Ill try the cable tension now.

I played with t he knob and it still does it. It is almost like there is a bump in the chain every second or two. The knob was turned all the way to the spokes when I checked but even when I turned it away from them it kept doing it

I should probably also mention I just added a master link to a broken chain link and I haven't fully tightened it yet (partly because I can't get it to pull all the way in yet) and I didn't really want to in case I had to take it off again. But it skips even when that link isn't running over a gear

My next suggestion was going to be a bad chain link. If you try all of the proper adjustment techniques and it still happens, the chain is probably bad.

I know this may sound silly....did you route the chain over the derailleur correctly? I have accidentally routed the chain outside of the rear derailleur cage in the past and it took me a bit to figure out why it wasn't acting right.

I also want to add a few to the WTF suggestions.
Make sure you mounted the derailleur correctly. The stop tab needs to be on the correct side of the bolt. Make sure you didn't bend the derailleur while servicing it. Make sure your b limit screw is adjusted correctly. You want the derailleur close to the rear cog, but not touching it.

You can just take it into your LBS ask what they charge to adjust it.
A couple of our LBS's will do it in less than 3 minute's and won't charge anything.
If you can watch what they do if not search You Tube for video's how to adjust it.
Then remember them when you need to buy something and support your LBS

You can just take it into your LBS ask what they charge to adjust it.
A couple of our LBS's will do it in less than 3 minute's and won't charge anything.
If you can watch what they do if not search You Tube for video's how to adjust it.
Then remember them when you need to buy something and support your LBS

Yea I was going to do that. I have also noticed I bought a SRAM powerlink and I am pretty sure I have a KMC chain. I noticed that the KMC link is really stiff in the chain and it doesn't move around easily like the other links.

Next step would be to find a ruler; plastic or wood, it doesn't matter. Next, hold the ruler near the end, firmly in your right hand. Now, hold out your left hand; fingers spread. Finally, smack your left hand sharply with the ruler.

Repeat this process any time you feel the need to remove your derailleurs for cleaning!

You can clean them while still on the bike; I generally just wipe the pulleys off periodically with a rag to keep the chain lube build-up to a minimum. Too much work to remove/adjust every time things get dirty!